UCAB brings Cool Kids to campus

After Rogue Wave, the intended Homecoming headliner, canceled its scheduled appearance at the College of William and Mary, UCAB secured The Cool Kids and Yoav to perform alongside The Ting Tings at this year’s Homecoming concert. Lead singer of Rogue Wave, Zach Rogue, slipped two discs in his neck and cannot perform. The band canceled all of its performances for October.

The music committee offered The Cool Kids, an old-school hip hop duo from Chicago, a slot in the concert the day after Rogue Wave canceled. The Cool Kids accepted the offer and will appear as special guests.
“We’ve been wanting to get The Cool Kids to perform here for months, and they were planning to be in Virginia the day before, so they accepted our offer,” UCAB Music Committee Chair Sean O’Mealia ’09 said.

The Cool Kids, comprised of Evan “Chuck Inglish” Ingersoll and Antoine “Mikey Rocks” Reed, have referred to themselves as “the Black version of The Beastie Boys.” The band, which previously opened for British singer M.I.A., has been hailed by the Los Angeles Times as “one of the more promising new groups to emerge in recent years,” and by Rolling Stone as “Chicago’s next great hip-hop duo.”

In the past, the Student Hip-Hop Organization has requested that UCAB invite The Cool Kids. O’Mealia believes The Cool Kids have amassed a large fan base at the College because of their recurring music on WCWM.

The opening act will be singer-songwriter Yoav, who fuses traditional and electronic beats through his vocals and electric guitar. Yoav has been opening for the Ting Tings on the band’s current tour. His agents contacted UCAB to find out whether they were interested in having him perform in the Homecoming concert as well.

O’Mealia is optimistic about the student response to the concert.

“I’m more excited for this concert than I was for the Rogue Wave and Ting Tings concert,” O’Mealia said.

The Ting Tings will perform as scheduled at the concert Oct. 25 at 8 p.m. at the Lake Matoaka Amphitheater. Tickets are free for students with a student ID and $10 for the public.